Gabriel Prosser

Gabriel Prosser (1776-10 October 1800) was an enslaved blacksmith who led a large slave rebellion in the Richmond, Virginia area in the summer of 1800.

Biography
Gabriel Prosser was born in Brookfield, Henrico County, Virginia in 1776, and he was trained as a blacksmith and taught to read and write. In 1800, he was directly informed of the Haitian Revolution by French slaves new to the Richmond area, and he planned to organize a thousand slaves to march on the state capitol and take governor James Monroe hostage. However, a few nervous slaves informed the authorities of the planned rebellion, and scores of conspirators were jailed. Prosser compared himself to a black George Washington, worrying white Virginians. On 10 October 1800, Gabriel, his two brothers, and 23 other slaves were hanged.